To fund the ophthalmic equipment and surgical instruments needed to establish 4 new eye clinics in rural areas where the population currently has no access to local eye care services.
Project Background:
In October 2007, Sri Lanka’s Ministry of Health launched its National Programme for Prevention and Control of Avoidable Blindness 2007-2012. A key component of the national strategy is to reduce the prevalence of blindness due to cataract by 70% by the year 2012. To reach this target requires the annual number of cataract surgeries being performed to be increased from its 2007 level of 45,000 surgeries to 66,000 by the year 2012.
The strategy adopted by the Ministry of Health to achieve and sustain the increase in cataract surgeries needed is to open a number of new eye clinics each year over the next five years, where Ophthalmologists returning from their final year of training overseas will be posted to develop local eye care services.
Having been proactive for many years in supporting avoidable blindness initiatives, the Rotary Club of Kandy is keen to lend its support to this initiative as it will achieve a very significant increase in the number of people whose sight is restored through cataract surgery. During 2008, the Rotary Club of Kandy hopes to raise sufficient funds to fully equip new eye clinics to be established in the districts of Kantale (North East Province), Balapitiya (South West Province), Diyatalawa (south East Province) and Dickoya (Central Province). Collectively the four districts serve a population of over 1.5 million people.
Project Outcomes:
Establishing 4 new eye clinics will provide a sustainable solution to the provision of local eye care services to 1.5 million people. Once all the new eye clinics are functional, an additional 7,200 cataract surgeries will be performed each year (Ophthalmologists each performing 1,800 surgeries), which represents a 16% increase on the total number of cataract surgeries (45,000) performed throughout Sri Lanka in 2007.
Budget Requirement:
Providing all necessary ophthalmic equipment and surgical instruments for one new eye clinics will cost $US 49,177(see attached budget). | 
